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Kristina Castaneto
Areas of interest
Prosocial behaviour; Friendships; Friendship maintenance; Friendship resiliency; Reaching out to old friends; Social connection; Well-being; Happiness; Scale development
Biography
Kristina Castaneto is a PhD Social Psychology student working alongside Dr. Lara Aknin in SFU’s Helping and Happiness Lab. In 2022, she graduated with distinction at Douglas College where she earned her BA (Hons.) in Applied Psychology with specializations in Pre-counselling, and Disability in Applied Behaviour Analysis. Since then, she successfully defended her MA thesis examining the predictors and consequences of reaching out to "old friends" – friends we care about but with whom we've lost touch. Currently, her PhD work focuses on the scale development and validation of a new construct called "friendship resiliency." She is particularly interested in delving further into this construct's nomological network and identifying links to social connection and wellbeing, especially in the context of reaching out to old friends.
I am incredibly grateful for all the opportunities SFU Psychology has afforded me throughout my graduate school journey. The growth that I have achieved so far would not have been possible without the kindness, support and encouragement of the great minds of the Social Psychology area, both faculty and graduate students alike. The community I found here has made my graduate experience both meaningful and fulfilling, and I hope to contribute to fostering this same sense of community for those who join SFU Psychology in the future.
Kristina Castaneto
Interview
“The Last Show with David Cooper”: Reaching Out to Old Friends
September 8, 2025 on 730 CKNW. Interview segment at 30:10 to 39:25.
Publications
In Press
Making sense of giving cents: Social evaluations in charitable giving
By Castaneto, K. K., & Aknin, L. B. (In press). In J. Landy (Eds.), Research Handbook on Social Judgment. Edward Elgar Publishing.
Publications
Can saying “thanks” hinder social contact? Encouraging people to express gratitude to an old friend undermines reconnection efforts
Who reaches out to old friends and what do they say?
What types of gratitude expressions promote prosocial behavior?
The joy of prosocial behavior: A narrative review of the consistency, rigor and generalizability of experiments on prosocial behaviors and happiness
Martin Buber: Guide for a psychology of suffering
Op-Ed Publications
Reluctance to reach out to old friends is a common experience, but reconnecting can pay off
Expressing gratitude isn’t necessary, but a little appreciation may still go a long way
It’s hard to reach out to old friends, but doing so may help alleviate loneliness
Awards
- SFU Graduate Fellowship – Spring 2026
- SFU Graduate Fellowship – Spring 2025
- SSHRC Canada Graduate Scholarship – Fall 2023
- SFU Special Graduate Entrance Scholarship – Fall 2023